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Saturday, October 31, 2009

♥This is a 'bonus post' please scroll down to see my regular saturday post♥

Okay, so my boy recently told me the Winner...Winner thing is from a McDonald's commercial?

I had no idea...I read it on someone else's blog and I thought it was pretty catchy...those McDonald's marketing peeps...LOL...can I tell you the last time I had a meal at McDonald's was back in 1995 when I was pregnant with my dd?! I was big into Super Size Fries and Egg McMuffins...I need to emphasize "big" as I became HUGE...LOL

Okay, okay...sorry, straying from the task on hand...I tend to do that...get distracted...anywho's...on Thursday I asked you all what you thought I was making:

I had a total of 26 correct guesses...I guess I wasn't being too sneaky about it :)

Yuppers...it is an Advent Calendar...actually a cookie sheet Advent Calendar....I was so very inspired by this one on the Pink Paislee blog. I know! Gorgeous...isn't it??!!! Her's was much more labor intensive, I used all pre-made embellies by Making Memories, Basic Grey and Stampin' Up.

Although I'm still not 100% finished, I thought I'd show you anyways:)

I learned a TON making this...

1. Teflon...when they say non-stick, they mean non-stick {note, do not use a teflon coated cookie sheet}

2. Not all cookie sheets are magnetic

3. If your cookie sheet isn't magnetic, keep the magnets on the embellies, it gives the calendar a nicer look.

I'll get back to the deets on the lessons I learned...I know that you all want to know the winner of the chicken dinner:

Yup, for you early birds {like laura} you may have noticed that originally that post had that very irritating font issue, again....I think that I've figured out when that tends to happen to me....I am constantly "fussing" with my posts...I tend to start them days before they actually "go live" but go back to them again and again...adding...deleting...continually picking at them...I must do something to the html that makes the font huge and squooshed together...I dunno...I'm no techie...I just date one:)

Quick notes about the Advent Calendars...we initally just used any 'ole cookie sheets...not really thinking about teflon coating...Luckily my friend was able to cleverly disguise some magnets in the upper and lower corners of her calendar to hold everything onto the cookie sheet.

I switched out my teflon cookie base with another silver cookie sheet...even spray painted it white {patting myself on the back for doing that..} only to find out that the magnets wouldn't stick...I thought that they had earlier...cripes...so then I started ripping off the semi-expensive magnets off the backs of the embellies thinking that I would make another advent calendar and use those magnets...I did that to about 5 days of embellies and then realized that I liked the 'height' that the magnets gave the embellies...grrrrr....so I put them back onto the embellies.

Live and Learn Ladies...Live and Learn.

I'm going to make 2 more advent calendars for my kidlets. Theirs will be the 12 days of christmas using watchmaker tins...watch for that in the coming weeks.

Kazan's sketch #38 is super and it is being sponsored by the fabbie Regina of The Cutting Cafe!!! P.S. I can't wait to see the new 2S4Y Design Team...pretty exciting stuff!!!!

Okay, so this is a monstrosity of a card...haha....I used Sassafras Monstrosity, There she goes and The Cutting Cafe on this wild & crazy card!! I added stitching on each of the panels and do you see the smidge of glitter? It is actually underneath the blue 'meet me for coffee' circle. That {bo-bunny} panel is actually on pop dots...added some PTI vintage buttons and called it good:)

Next up is a non-sketch challenge card...say it isn't so!!!! This is me, all me and nothing but me:) Okay, so the blue paper is from Kay {thanks girlie..it is from the Carolyn Gavin pad}...the felt and chippie are American Crafts...the chocolate glitter letters are Making Memories and of course the owlie and sentiment are My Cute Stamps.

P.S. My co-worker M is on a roll...she found me 2 more vintage frogs...woot woot...thanks M!!!

Good Grief, Graphic 45 colors are soooo rich & vibrant...what's not to love? Whaddya think about the pop of the ZVA crystals? Call me frugal, I cut them apart...more bang for my buck that way..LOL.

Well, this is a change from my regularly scheduled posts....my blogging sista Savitri asked me to help out on M's Sketch Challenge #3!!!! I am super flattered that she asked me....you know how much I love m's challenges!!!! Savitri & M even managed to get a sponsor for this sketch....the very fabbie Regina of The Cutting Cafe!!!!!! Now how coolio is that? You all know how much I ♥♥ Regina and The Cutting Cafe!!

Okay, here's the bashful m with her Sketch Challenge #3:

Here's my take on the fun sketch:

Many of you know how I adore non-traditional holiday colors...pink and green have got to be my favorite!!!!!! The mitten is from Mitten Shaped card template...sooooo stinkin' FUN!!! I used martha glitter to outline the mitten and of course I had to add the fun poms...gotta love the poms!

I used a square Fabriano card and paper piece the lovely bloom. The stitched ribbon is actually from the M's $ bin....love that! The button is PTI, the twine is SU. So, are your wheels turning...thinking of a great idea for the

This is such a GREAT sketch...I put together Jillibean, Hambly and A Muse:

Seriously, who can resist black & kraft with a smidge of glitter??!!

Earlier this week I was trying to recuperate from the Gift Show...the multiple soccer games in different towns...a sick kid. Realistically, I should have spent Sunday cleaning/organizing my home but I had invited my friend LB over to be crafty with me...we wanted to work on a certain project...I was making mine for me...not for anyone else but me. It always seems like I'm making projects for someone else...usually a birthday gift...and never something that I keep.

Here's a sneaky peek of it:

Any guesses as to what it is? LOL...it shouldn't be too difficult to figure out. What if I put up a smidge of blog candy...what? 2 blog candies in 1 week? Aha...but these are fat-free my friends...how about a set of this? Those of you that have been following me know my love of Sassy stuff:) Let's pick Friday, October 30th by 11:50 Pacific Daylight time...that's the deadline to post your comment with your guess. I'll draw a name out of the correct answers and post the winner on Saturday...Halloween!

BTW, I'll post a pic of the entire project later...maybe on Halloween...it's almost complete!

Okay, here's how this blog hop works.....some of us will have our own individual blog candy offerings...Pam has one and has certain requirements:) You just have to leave each Design Team member a comment...you have until Saturday, October 31st at 11:59 PM EST to make your comments. Pam will draw two winners at random on Sunday, November 1st.

For my personal blog candy, you just have to leave me 1 comment on this post {that'll obviously count for Pam's blog candy too}. You have until Saturday, October 31st at 11:59 PM Pacific Daylight time to make your comments. I will draw 1 winner at random that I will post on Sunday, November 1st.

Here goes for me, they are in no certain order and not everything is crafty oriented:

1. I'm a 2006 graduate of the University of Washington...cripes, does that make me about 25 years old?! LOL....nah, I'm what I call a "late bloomer". I have an Interdisciplinary Degree in Arts & Sciences with a Concentration in Psychology.

Some of you ladies asked for a pic of my Gift Show table...It was a terrific venue...in a model home..every square inch had a vendor {except the bathrooms!}. There was a great variety and I'm trying to get into some future shows.

Friday, October 23, 2009

Well, I'm just squeaking my CP#37 in but missed the JUGS3 challenge by oh, 24 hours...LOL. Oh well, it is the thought that counts right? I knew that I just had to play with that fabbie color combo!

I'm posting this on Friday night...it might just be my "Saturday" post or I might get really motivated and sling out a card tomorrow morning...there is another sketch challenge along with a color challenge I have printed out. Honestly though, I seriously have about a 6x6 inch work space...my crafting area is a ginormous mess...I gotta clean it up before I can create anything else...

Okay, here are the deets of my card. I have of course used Cosmo Cricket Early Bird {shocking, I know!}. I used Regina's Cutting Cafe Happy Thanksgiving Day Circle Word printable...the alpha? Vinyl Thickers, of course! I correlate Thanksgiving to pumpkin pie....my ex-mil makes THEE best pumpkin pie...everything else {to me} pales in comparison to her delish recipe...it's old school...loaded with tons of stuff that make me instantly gain weight just by looking at it...sigh...Not only is that lady a super cook, she is a super gal too!

Well, the boy is at a birthday party so me and the girl went and had Vietnamese for dinner...

Okay, off to hulu...no, not the dance:)

In case I don't pop back until Sunday...highly unlikely, I can't stay away...remember to pop back on Sunday for 365 Cards 1st ever Blog Hop!!! I'll have some blog candy for ya...you certainly don't want to miss it!!

The Design Team had the opportunity to play with the Jolly Pumpkin stamp. I decided to ink up everything but his face so that I could make my card a Thanksgiving card! Can I just say that the pumpkin stamp inks up beautifully.....seriously....the image came out crisp and clean the very first time!!! I find that some polymer stamps don't get a good clear image and I end up rubbing my hands on it and even my jeans...it helps but That's Jazzy Stamp Dreams stamps you don't need to do that...fabulous....

Here are the deets on my card...I paper pieced the pumpkin with some crate paper {it really is orange, the color is washed out in the photo}...the other patterned paper is October Afternoon {along with the alpha...thanks Beth!!!}. The 4U are vinyl thickers...throw in a bunch of stitching and there you have it!

I'm sooo looking forward to seeing how you are inspired by the sketch!!!

I get to meet Ginny AND shop with her...now how stinkin' fun is that?!!!!

My non-blogging friends don't 'get it'...meeting up with blogging friends...but you all get it...there is something so coolio about meeting up with someone else that:

1. blogs

2. creates

3. understands the insanity of blogging and creating...LOL

Ginny....I chuckled when I read Paulina's comment about the convention:

Remember, you don't need to buy everything at the convention, Ginny. hehe

Oh Ginny...we are going to get along just fabulously my friend :)

On a non-crafty side note {I've been doing these alot lately}, I managed to get through the entire Season 5 of Grey's earlier this week and have jumped onto Hulu to catch up on Season 6...'d' is always chuckling at me when I'm watching the shows...I go from laughing to gasping to all out sobbing....it's wonderfully therapeutic..LOL.

Well girlies, thanks so much for reading my novella....I betcha you all are wishing that I go back to blogging 7 days a week just so that my posts are shorter..LOL

Thursday, October 22, 2009

This challenge was a slam dunk for me...I've had these gorgeous K&Co Paisley papers for years...I still love them!!! I stitched them together using chocolate brown thread. I cracked open my 7Gypsies chocolate velvet flowers that I've been hoarding and topped it with PTI vintage buttons and a Kaiser Crafts pearl. The sentiment is an American Crafts rub on...Everything is nestled on my favorite Speckletone Kraft base.

In an effort not to overload you all on Saturday {these days I seem to upload 3 cards on Saturday to catch up on challenges etc}...I though I'd double up today's post with another challenge card....I wanted to play M's Sketch Challenge #2:

I was thoroughly challenged by M's sketch....You should see my work space...paper and embellies everywhere...LOL.I've been having a BALL with these nugget tins...they are such a nice vessel for anything and everything. This is Making Memories meets Martha....The pink glittery polka dot paper, the semi-circle scallop and the tiny alpha stickers are MM...you know what is Martha...yup, the loopy goodness...all topped off with thee adorable hedgie from My Cute Stamps. Did you notice it? Her nose is actually a Kaiser Crafts pearl...she is paper pieced with MM paper. BTW, you'll be so proud of me, I recycled the MM packaging and the scallop piece is from that:) The sentiment is:happy days 2UWondering what is inside? Hmmm...some very fun embellies...I'll wait to hear from the recipient before saying anything:)

Fantabulous job on the challenging sketch Miss M!I set up for my gift fair last night with the help of my boy...check out my side bar--->Click on the Sassy Mei logo!The beauty of it...I don't have to tend to my booth...the Sassy Mei gals do everything:) Wish me luck...I'm sharing an 8 foot table with my ultra-talented cousin...I did take a couple pics of my table last night but it was too dark...hope to get more pics on Friday afternoon.

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Welcome to 365 CardsSuper Sketchy Sunday!!Isn't Pam's sketch for this week fabulous? I looked at it for a smidge and then it hit me to rotate it. I knew that I wanted to break into my Jolly by Golly kit.I teamed it up with chocolate brown stitching and an A Muse sentiment.

Can you believe that it is Sunday already? I've been having a great weekend so far. On Friday night 'd' and I went to Ikea..gotta love that place. On Saturday afternoon'ish the boy had a soccer game, 40+ miles away....it absolutely and totally bucketed all the way down there...luckily during his game it actually stopped raining..whew! For dinner we got together with a bunch of my fabbie girlfriends, actually co-ed...we don't typically get together with the 'men folk' but it was really me showing off my wonderful man:) It was fun times...tons of different conversations going at the same time, lots of laughter and great food....what more could you ask for??

Saturday, October 17, 2009

For those that have been following me, they know how much I enjoy challenges....M's Sketch Challenge is super fabulous because the sketch artist is Savitri's most a-dorable whipper snapper 'm'!! I couldn't pass up the opportunity to play along AND perhaps even get a comment from 'm'...okay, I'd be happy with you too Savitri..LOL.

I bought 2 sheets of Bo Bunny paper...pink and green polka dots...lovely stuff...ultra sweet. Those cutie pie scallop trees are from The Cutting Cafe! The All About Christmas Set seriously ROCKS!!! That Regina is quite the busy chicklet!

I've been busy putting together projects for an upcoming Holiday Sale...remember, I work better under pressure....it is in less than 1 week....oy.

Each of the gals on the Get Sketchy DT was given a couple Sakura pens to play with. I decided to use mine to ink up some nakie chippie letters! They are nestled on a Jenni Bowlin Die Cut...I added an American Crafts flair with MM glittery chocolate number/alpha. The patterned paper is Bella Blvd that I stitched with chocolate thread.

The Bonus Challenge:

Handwritten Sentiment/Doodling

Okay, I'll be honest, I don't do any handwritten greetings on the exterior of my cards...that's what all the fun embellies are for..LOL. I'm not a huge fan of my handwriting:)

OMGoodness...I had sooooo much fun putting this card together!!! The Cosmo Cricket Earth Love paper, American Crafts card base and the Shinzi Katoh "joy" Linen tape is from the Torendi October kit!!! Oy, that linen tape is over the top stinkin' CUTE!!!

Sooooo....are you wondering about my title?

Cranky Joy

No, I'm not cranky..lol..{actually maybe a smidge..read on} it is referring to the fact that I hand cranked my Janome sewing machine wheel around all the elements that have stitching...

I certainly wouldn't consider myself a techie person but what I AM is highly dependent on my phone...my address book...my notes...my pictures...**poof** they are gone.

It actually all started the day before I left for Florida...for a majority of my trip I didn't have my addy book, my email, my internet...well, my email/internet has been restored but everything is gone..I realize that in the 'big picture' having cell phone issues is small compared to the other bigger problems in the world, but if YOU have been hit by the Sidekick mess...please let me know OR if you are currently a T-Mobile customer and have a phone that you just love, please let me know:)